The Storm Crow

This was so fresh and so unbelievably good! I haven’t really read; I’ve been in a reading slump for ages, but when I decided to order this one, I fell right into it and I was immediately sucked in.Anthia, a princess from Rhodaire, is a rebel with a cause. The Kingdom of Rhodaire has been devastated by the raid by the Illucian Empire, led by the ruthless Queen Razel. Anthia’s sister, Caliza is forced to become the Queen after their mother was killed during the attack. Rhodaire, once protected by the magical crows, is left vulnerable to Illucia’s aggression. These crows were the kingdom’s main source of power and prosperity; magic crows that possessed different elemental magic were also killed. Anthia’s kingdom is in dire straits with Illucian soldiers surrounding the city, ready to destroy it on orders from Queen Razel, however, Anthia is offered a chance to save her kingdom by agreeing to marry Prince Ericen of Illucia, Razel’s son. Along with her best friend Kiva, she is taken to Illucia to be closer to Ericen and Queen Razel. But before leaving, Anthia discovers a hidden storm crow egg, giving her and her people hope for a brighter future. Determined to save her kingdom and unite the other countries oppressed by Illucia, Anthia embarks on a mission to hatch the egg and rally allies. With the help of her loyal friend Kiva and the young inventor she befriends, Caylus, Anthia must evade the watchful eyes of the Illucians, including Shearen, a cruel soldier with a mysterious connection to Ericen. I don’t want to give too much more away, but AHHH the one part when she discovered how to actually hatch the egg had me in tears; finally, she’s made progress… but it takes a turn for the worst when she’s discovered.I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of this book. The story is captivating and kept me engaged throughout, the writing in this book is easy to follow and well-crafted, maintaining a steady pace while evoking vivid imagery of the enchanting world. I found myself feeling invested in the outcome and was at times on edge with all the suspense. Additionally, I appreciate that the author makes it clear from the start that this is a kingdom with a diverse cast of characters.I highly recommend this YA Fantasy to anyone looking for something fresh to read. It’s truly unique with its use of crows as the source of magic and I eagerly anticipate delving deeper into their significance in the next book, which I’m about to start right now!

Ainda não li o livro mas chegou impecável

Does this book’s plot bring anything new and amazing to the table as far as fantasy concepts go?No.Does this book highlight mental health in the most positive way I’ve seen yet while still giving me a solid fantasy?Yes.I could connect with Anthia so much because of this, it’s a slow-moving story to start in a lot of ways due to its focus on her and handling her depression.The story is beautiful and raw and Josephson normalizes Thia’s depression in a way that doesn’t smooth it over or constantly portrays Thia as a victim.I really enjoyed the storyline and the concept of the crows and their magic. I now want to become a crow rider, though, I don’t see that happening unless I shrink to the size of Thumbelina in our nonmagical world lol.Josephson did a lovely job of worldbuilding and character development because even when Anthia is not in the midst of an episode of depression she still carries it with her, it doesn’t get ‘magicked’ away and I found that to be such an important factor.

For a debut novel, in the flooded teen fantasy genre, The Storm Crow provides what I was hoping for with a little twist here and there. The easiest way to describe this is expect the Crows to be equivalent to Dragons in most stories.PlotThere are politics, different countries (at war of course), and strong relationships. Not only are there some partners meeting up, but also lovely friendships and even some sisterhood moments. This places Kalyn Josephson in a category above most of the average YA writers of today; as she was able to create love in more than just the average pairing.DepressionI would be surprised to learn if Josephson hasn’t had some mental health moments in her life. The descriptions and emotions of our lead gal who is suffering from depression are very well done. And instead of having the depression last a day and magically getting it better; The Storm Crow focuses on finding our lead gal purpose and inspiring her to have desires.OverallI’m really impressed with Josephson’s first book. If she continues to improve on what she has begun in The Storm Crow I’m confident she will be the next big teen fantasy author. Her pacing, descriptions, world building and characters are all at a quality above the average author in this genre. The more I think about this book the more I feel my four stars might be too low. So consider this one a solid 4 stars with an opportunity to jump to 5 if the sequel carries forward on par or stronger.I just need to keep remembering that a giant Crow is as cool and sleek as a Dragon. 😉Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

Hätte am Anfang nicht gedacht das mir das Buch so gut gefallen würde. Spannend bis zum Schluss und kann es nur empfehlen. Freu mich schon auf den zweiten Teil.

Great book, good read

I wanted to read this book from the moment I learned about it last year. It looked so interesting and different and can we take a moment to gush over the cover? Like really how gorgeous is it? Let it be known that if you want to make sure I buy a book, just put a crow on the cover or in the title. Even better if it’s in both.When Illucia attacks Rhodaire, all that Anthia ever knew is destroyed. With the loss of her mother and the precious crows, Anthia will be forced to leave her lands and go live in the last place she wants to be: Illucia. Before she sets off she will find the last hope her kingdom may have of fighting off the Illucians: a crow’s unhatched egg. But Anthia is tired of being inactive and with this new discovery, she decides to fight back.I loved this book. It was unique, diverse and highly entertaining. The magic system, to me, felt different and fresh. I haven’t seen a lot of books where the magic system comes from an animal that isn’t a dragon. Don’t get me wrong I love dragons, I’m not a monster, but it’s fun to see something out of the ordinary. The crows here help in every aspect of life in Rhodaire. From controlling the weather to helping with agriculture. They are the key to the kingdom’s prosperity and you get a sense that without them it will crumble.Princess Anthia, our main character, was such a great character. She was strong but wasn’t afraid to show her weaknesses as well. After losing everything including her mother, we see her go through hardships and depression. It also seems that she has PTSD, which seemed very realistic to me after everything she went through. I loved that Kalyn decided to show this side of Anthia. Most times in YA fiction, well probably in most fiction, we see characters go through traumatic events and a lot of the time it seems they walk off without any sort of damage. This depiction of Anthia’s anxiety and depression to me felt possible, real. It was very well done and genuine. It also shows her struggling to get past her fears and anxiety. I thought her character arc was on point.One thing I love in a story is a good villain. Razel, the queen of Illucia, was one of the best female villains I have seen in a while. She reminded me of characters like the Evil Queen or Amarantha from A Court of Thorns and Roses. Though there are reasons behind her evilness if you will, she was just so nasty that I had to love her.The story went at an even pace. There was always something going on even if it was just transitions to more important part of the story. I was always interested in what was happening.I can’t wait for the next installment of The Storm Crow. Is it out yet? If you liked books like Snow like Ashes and A Court of Thorns and Roses, I highly recommend that you pick up The Storm Crow.

Quick Stats:Overall: 4/5 StarsCharacters: 4/5Setting: 5/5Writing: 5/5Plot and Themes: 4/5Awesomeness Factor: 4.5/5// Content/Trigger Warning: Violence, Death, Depression, Self Harm, Animal Death, War Themes, Mental Illness, PTSD //"It’s difficult to walk against the wind. It takes strength.”I really love the world this book built. Kalyn Josephson clearly spent a lot of time developing each kingdom mentioned in The Storm Crow. They all have such unique cultures and politics, some of which is only ever hinted at. I really hope the sequel continues to shine a lot on each fascinating kingdom. I also am really excited to learn more about the magic in this world (and, of course, the Crows)(I really want my own Crow now). The writing itself is also really good. It’s easy to jump in to, and accessible for anyone new to fantasy."I knew what I needed to do, but working up the will to do it felt like trying to fight my way above water in a depthless ocean. It was so hard not to drown.”I have to admit,the beginning of this book is a little slow. It took me a good hundred pages to really be immersed in the story, but once I got to that point, I just wanted to keep reading. There’s a lot of world-building and character set up in the first few chapters, but it’s so worth pushing past that!"Gone was the world I knew, and I’d let it be taken.”The characters are really where this book shines. First off- Thia. I really loved her. The one thing about her (and this book as a whole) that stood out was her depression. Kalyn Josephson does not shy away from depicting the reality of living with depression. She wrote it so well that I had to step away from it a few times. Thia’s depression is very accurate, and definitely hit home for me. It made me so happy to see a YA protagonist with a very real mental illness, and still be the awesome heroine we’re so used to seeing. The other stand out character was Ericen. I’m definitely a sucker for the bad-boy-with-backstory type, so I should have predicted that I would love him. I really enjoyed how complex of a character he was, and I’m so excited to see more of him. Also, a little side note that I wanted to mention- there are so many LGBTQ+ side characters!!!As for relationships-- I really adored the friendships in this book. It’s rare to see such a strong female friendship in YA, but this book definitely had that going for it. However, the romance plot line seemed weak. I felt like Thia had way more chemistry with some of the other characters than she did with her love interest. But maybe I’m biased."The lion fears only the fox.”- Conclusion -Pros- Very well written mental health representation, the Crows, great characters & settingCons- The romance felt forcedOverall- 4/5 stars.The Storm Crow is a great debut that will have you dreaming of having your own Crow. I know I will be.*All quotes are taken from the ARC and are subject to change**Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions in this review are my own.*

The Storm Crow is one of those books I couldn’t put down. Thia’s battle with her emotions and her enemies is powerful and captivating. The action in this novel is beautifully written and full of fantastical elements. I became so engrossed in the world and characters that there were times I forgot I was in the real world and not in Thia’s world.The elemental crows were unique and fascinating and added a mystical touch to the story. Rhodaire’s crows are essential to their life and without them, the people have to learn how to perform simple tasks, such as growing crops. Life changes drastically for the people, and not just because the crows were lost; loved ones were lost, too, in the battle. To Thia, everything seems hopeless. All she sees is darkness and no light at the end; she doesn’t see how she can move on.One aspect of The Storm Crow I highly enjoyed seeing was how depression was openly discussed. Thia realizes early on that the destruction of her world as she knew it threw her into a deep and potentially dark depression. Throughout the story, Thia’s depression helps shape her character and starts to give her the strength she needs to overcome the past and save her kingdom and people. Thia’s depression battles are detailed to where the reader could feel and/or see Thia openly struggling. Her depression felt real and raw. She becomes a master in hiding her depression behind a fake smile, but those closest to her can see the past is eating her alive. I haven’t read many YA fantasy books that openly mention/discuss depression, so I was surprised that this became a key point in The Storm Crow. There’s so many readers that battle depression, and I know to some it’s important to see depression depicted, especially in fantasy. How Josephson address depression in her book really lays it out for the world to see and for everyone to understand that depression is not something you can easily shake off. Her depiction of depression was, overall, one of the main reasons I loved The Storm Crow.“I might be queen, but you were meant to be so much more. Crow or no crow, one way or another, you will fly. You were always meant to rule the sky.”Thia is a strong and emotional person. She knows she has to go to Illucia, the kingdom that attacked hers, to try to bring peace and save her people. Thia, at first, believes everything is lost; the fight she once had in her is gone, left behind in the rubble of the battle. But that all changes when Thia finds an unhatched storm crow egg. To Thia, this changes everything. Thia has a newfound hope to fight for her kingdom and people, all from within the palace walls of her enemy. But there’s just one slight problem: Thia doesn’t know how to hatch a crow egg. Nevertheless, Thia refuses to give up hope; she refuses to give up.The secondary characters in The Storm Crow were also what made this book a 5 star review for me. Her best friend and bodyguard, Kiva, share not just a best friend bond, but a sisterly bond. They’re relationship reminded me of my relationship with my best friend, and I love seeing those types of friendships depicted in fantasy stories. Kiva helps Thia battle her depression while staying in enemy territory. They’re not just best friends; they’re a team and both will do whatever it takes to see Queen Razel burn for her wrongdoings. Then there’s Caylus. Caylus is a soft yet incredibly smart and reliable friend to Thia; she trusts him so much that she relies on him to help her solve the hatching behind a crow egg.And, of course, there’s Prince Ericen. At first, he’s a terrible, cold-heartless person; he’s basically everything that makes a villain. But he slowly starts to show Thia a side he’s never shown anyone, not even his mother, the ruthless Queen Razel. Ericen wants to build a trusting relationship with Thia but Thia doesn’t quite know how that’s possible when he’s the son of the woman that killed her mother. He’s a well described character with an interesting backstory.“It was only you. Because I, like everyone, knew what you were.A delinquent?A storm. A tempest of lightning and thunder with the kind of heart found only in legends.”Josephson’s writing is captivating and compelling. She weaves words together to bring a magical and powerful story to light. Her description of the kingdoms and the characters is wonderfully well-written and very descriptive. Josephson also knows how to depict feelings and relationships really well. There was phenomenal character growth with Thia and her companions; Thia really starts to come into her own and grow as a person and fighter.All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed The Storm Crow. Josephson creates a world the reader can easily get lost in. If you enjoy an adventurous fantasy novel with lovable animals and relationships, then I definitely recommend reading The Storm Crow!